Various types of frames for doors, windows, and the like for houses and other buildings have been developed. A known type of door and window frame construction utilizes conventional species of wood such as pine or poplar. The wood may be made up of smaller pieces of wood that have been finger jointed together. In general, frame members that are made from finger jointed wood are lower cost than if a one-piece member were utilized to make the individual frame members. Such frames are generally primed and painted, and the finger joints are therefore not visible, and do not detract from the appearance of the finished product.
Window and door frames are normally exposed to moisture and other environmental factors, and the resulting decay, rotting, insect damage, and other deterioration of the wood has been a problem. Various frame constructions have been developed in an attempt to solve the problems associated with decay and deterioration of window and door frames. In general, known pressure-treated wood is not suitable for window and door frames because the compounds utilized to treat the wood interfere with paint that is applied to the treated wood, thereby making it difficult or impossible to provide a painted surface having the desired appearance.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,873,209; 5,661,943; 6,122,882; and 6,446,410 disclose door frames and other products having upper wood portions and lower portions made of an extruded wood-based product such as Strandex®, ERT®, Trex® or the like that are finger jointed to the wood upper portions. Although this arrangement does provide a degree of environmental resistance, the dissimilarity of the materials used in the upper and lower portions of the frames may cause difficulty in terms of applying coatings such as primer and/or paint.
Hence, a frame for doors, windows, and the like alleviating the disadvantages of known frames would be advantageous.